A police drone pilot tracked down three suspects in dense undergrowth in the dead of night.
Officers were searching for three men who fled from a lorry near the McArthur Glen East Midlands outlet retail park in South Normanton.
The lorry, which is believed to have been stolen, failed to stop for officers on the M1 and was abandoned near the A38 shortly after 2am on Monday 5 August.
With the men nowhere to be seen, a police drone and a dog unit arrived at the scene to help with the search.
Using a thermal imaging camera attached to the drone, the pilot soon identified three figures lying prone in the undergrowth.
He was then able to direct officers to their location.
Three men, aged 25, 20 and 20, were arrested on suspicion of various offences including theft of a motor vehicle and failing to stop.
They have since been released on conditional police bail.
Two mobile phones were also recovered from the scene and have been seized.
Sergeant Vince Saunders, chief drone pilot at Nottinghamshire Police, said:
“This is another great example of the power and potential of our drone fleet and our highly trained pilots.
“The suspects in this case were found lying in dense undergrowth and were not visible to the naked eye.
“In addition to tracking and helping to detain the suspects in this case, the pilot was also able to alert officers on the ground to vital additional evidence.
“Before our drones team was established in 2020 this result may not have been possible.”
